Egyptian falafel (from Al Masri) as seen in San Francisco, California, on Wednesday, February 24, 2011. Food styled by Kelly Rae Hickman.

Egyptian falafel (from Al Masri) as seen in San Francisco, California, on Wednesday, February 24, 2011. Food styled by Kelly Rae Hickman.

Photo: Craig Lee, Special To The Chronicle

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Falafel being scooped out of the deep fryer at King of Falafel.

Falafel being scooped out of the deep fryer at King of Falafel.

Photo: John Storey, Special To The Chronicle

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Nawai Kharsa guides the Chickpea mixture into the grinder at King of Falafel.

Nawai Kharsa guides the Chickpea mixture into the grinder at King of Falafel.

Photo: John Storey, Special To The Chronicle

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Nawai Kharsa makes the Chickpea mixture into balls before going into the fryer at King of Falafel restaurant in San Francisco, Calif., on Tuesday, March 1st, 2011.

Nawai Kharsa makes the Chickpea mixture into balls before going into the fryer at King of Falafel restaurant in San Francisco, Calif., on Tuesday, March 1st, 2011.

Photo: John Storey, Special To The Chronicle

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Olive spread as seen in San Francisco, California, on Wednesday, February 24, 2011. Food styled by Kelly Rae Hickman.

Olive spread as seen in San Francisco, California, on Wednesday, February 24, 2011. Food styled by Kelly Rae Hickman.

Photo: Craig Lee, Special To The Chronicle

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Falafel: Bay Area fills void for filling street food

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Most people go to Paris for the buttery croissants, chocolate-filled crepes and sprawling markets.

I went for the falafel.

On a windy street in the Marais district - where Jewish shops and restaurants line the sidewalks - some of the best crispy-filled pitas outside of the Middle East are sold. It's the only stop I made twice on a food tour though the city some years ago, and upon my return, I immediately set out on a hunt through the Bay Area in search of the perfect fried chickpea rounds that would mirror those at the tiny Paris restaurant.

But here's the thing about falafel: It's nearly impossible to replicate from restaurant to restaurant, let alone across continents. Despite being rife with ethnic cuisine, the Bay Area has had a surprisingly limited number of spots serving it, though that's beginning to change. People are finally recognizing the void for what many consider to be the ideal food - filling yet affordable, vegetarian and hugely variable.

Like regional barbecue, every group puts its own stamp on the dish. The Israelis serve falafel with pickle spears. Egyptians form theirs out of fava beans, while Palestinians use chickpeas. Some use cilantro, others fill lavash instead of pita. And like regional barbecue, strong opinions exist about what constitutes the "right" version.

"Anywhere you go, of course they'll tell you they have the best falafel," said Nawal Kharsa, chef and owner of San Francisco's King of Falafel.

According to Palestinian-born Kharsa, her restaurant was the first to introduce falafel to San Francisco more than 40 years ago, when she and her husband bought the corner liquor grocery store and began serving the spiced fried chickpea balls for free.

"We just started cooking it in a very small volume and handing it out," Kharsa said, "and after a while, people would come in to order it."

The space was transformed into a full counter-service restaurant in the 1980s, and now she's frying up hundreds of falafel balls each day.

More technique than recipe

It's a fairly basic recipe - made predominately from chickpeas, parsley, garlic, onion, jalapeno peppers and sesame seeds - but a quick lesson on falafel-making revealed that it's more about the technique.

On a recent Tuesday morning, Kharsa reached over an imposing meat grinder, feeding the raw, soaked chickpeas and aromatics through the tube. Regardless of background, all cooks agree that this is the best way to achieve a coarse yet tender texture, though several pulses in a food processor can yield somewhat similar results.

To ensure a fluffy interior, the remaining ingredients should be mixed by hand, and the oil - corn, peanut or canola, depending on whom you ask - should be hot enough that the falafel immediately floats to the surface when submerged. If all goes well, the end product should be an orb that's crusty on the outside but light within.

"Listen to this," Kharsa said as she leaned over a piece of falafel fresh from the fryer, instructing me to do the same. She pressed a thumb onto the crust, eliciting an audible crack and hiss as the steam escaped underneath. "It should always sound this crunchy."

Kharsa - like other Palestinians, Israelis and those from neighboring parts of the Middle East with one notable exception - believe that falafel should be chickpea based. But head into the Outer Richmond District to Al Masri, which according to owner Susan Molthen (a.k.a. chef Sausan) is the only Egyptian restaurant in Northern California, and you'll find a completely different version. Her tamiya, or Egyptian falafel, is made entirely from dried fava beans.

"There are just more growing in Egypt," she said.

She insists that her native country's long history naturally makes it the first to have introduced this street food.

"Every region, city or country in the Middle East has it," she said. "But it's all derivative - they put their own spices and flavors into it."

Appealing places to dine

King of Falafel and Al Masri have been among the longer-standing restaurants to serve falafel, but it wasn't until recently - with the introduction of Liba Falafel Truck and Amba restaurant in Oakland - that falafel flashed back on the radar.

Amba might be considered the next generation of falafel - geared to consumers looking for a clean, modern, inviting space instead of some of the grittier spots around the bay.

Managing partner and co-owner Jonathan Wornick said the four owners are all American-born Jews who either lived in or visited Israel many times and felt frustrated there was never a good source for falafel in the Bay Area.

To top the sandwich, Amba offers traditional garnishes - like Israeli salad (cucumbers and tomatoes), cabbage and pickles - and some, like the fluffy, lemony hummus, that actually veer from the norm.

"That's actually not something you'd traditionally see in the Middle East on the falafel," Wornick said. "We do it here because Americans expect to see it."

No matter the background, it's the toppings that make the meal. So much so that Gail Lillian, owner of Liba Falafel Truck, built her business around it.

Traveling through Amsterdam in 2000, Lillian said she was inspired by a falafel stand that had a condiment bar. At the time, she hadn't cooked a single ball of falafel in her life. She crafted a mild recipe that would be a good medium for toppings, and a decade later, her movable food truck has a permanent line.

'Not ethnically connected'

Customers get a pita with falafel and nothing else - the rest is up to them. Along the front of the truck, a condiment bar offers everything from olive-orange relish with thyme and yogurt raita (see recipes) to rosemary peanuts, pickled cabbage and dill-cardamom pickles. It's certainly not what you'd find in any one region of the Middle East.

"It's kind of a joke on the truck," said Lillian, a Connecticut native. "We get customers all the time asking if I'm Israeli, Greek, Lebanese. I say a million times a day that I'm not ethnically connected to falafel."

Consumers don't seem to mind. Most are just thrilled that this elusive cuisine is more readily available than before.

Amba's Hummus

Makes about 4 cups

This recipe is adapted from Amba in Oakland, where it's either served on its own and garnished with toppings - including cooked chickpeas and garlic, cooked fava beans, sauteed mushrooms and onions, fried eggplant or sliced hard-boiled eggs - or as a condiment on falafel.

1 1/2 cups dry chickpeas

-- Pinch baking soda

1/4 cup high quality tahini

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more to garnish

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon chopped garlic

1 tablespoon chopped Parsley

-- Pinch cumin, to taste

-- Kosher salt, to taste

-- Pinch paprika, to taste

Instructions: Soak chickpeas in plenty of water overnight. When fully soaked, chickpeas should still be under the water line. Drain completely and do not rinse.

Place the soaked chickpeas in a pot and cover with fresh water by at least two inches. Add plenty of salt and a pinch of baking soda. Cook over high heat for 45 minutes, stirring regularly. Periodically skim foam and loosened skins from the top of the pot.

When fully cooked, drain the chickpeas, reserving about two cups of cooking liquid for later use.

Transfer to large food processor and blend until very smooth. While blending, add tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, parsley and cumin until incorporated. Season to taste with salt.

If you want a smoother, looser hummus, thin it out with some of the reserved cooking liquid. Serve warm, garnished with paprika and a swirl of olive oil, or use as a condiment on falafel.

Wine pairings

Falafel-friendly wines should also be amenable to customary additions: raita, tahini sauce, tomatoes and onions. Most Italian white wines, white Rhone varietals and rosés will be at home on the table. Add the olive-orange relish for a Beaujolais-Villages.

Chickpea Falafel

Makes about 35-40 balls, serves 10-12

Adapted from King of Falafel in San Francisco. At the restaurant, chef/owner Nawal Kharsa serves these in pita bread or lavash, garnished with tahini sauce, hummus, cucumber tomato salad, pickled turnip and hot sauce.

1 pound dried chickpeas, soaked overnight in plenty of water to cover

1 onion, cut into large dice

1/4 cup whole garlic cloves

1 bunch curly parsley, chopped

1 1/2 jalapeno peppers, stems removed and pureed or chopped very fine

1 tablespoon baking soda

1/2 cup all purpose flour

3/4 cup sesame seeds

-- Corn oil, for frying

-- Cumin, for dusting

Instructions: Drain and rinse the chickpeas. In a meat grinder or food processor, grind the chickpeas, onions, garlic cloves and parsley together. If you're using a food processor, you'll have to do this in several stages. Mix together in a large bowl.

Add the jalapeno peppers, baking soda, flour and sesame seeds. Mix well with your hands until everything is incorporated. Add plenty of salt to taste (at least a tablespoon if not more).

When ready to fry, heat corn oil that's at least 3 inches deep in a large pot, to 350°. Form falafel into balls or domed discs about an inch and a half in diameter. Gently drop into the oil and fry until dark golden brown and crusty, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from oil, drain on paper towels, and dust with cumin.

In a food processor, mix the yellow and green onions, jalapeno peppers, garlic, cilantro, parsley, cumin, coriander and salt and pepper to taste. Pulse until fully combined. In a large bowl, add the processed ingredients to the fava beans, and toss so that all of the fava beans are coated.

Grind the coated fava beans in the food processor until semi-smooth, leaving some rough pieces. Do not ground fine. When all is processed/ground, the mixture should appear to be a light lime-green color. Taste for seasoning.

When ready to cook, heat oil in a large pot until it reaches 350°.

Shape falafel into disks in your hands, about 2 inches in diameter and 3/4-inch high. Sprinkle one side of the disk with the seeds, patting them into the mixture.

Carefully slide into the hot oil and let fry until golden brown, about 3-5 minutes.

Drain, and serve in pita bread with onion, tomato and tahini sauce.

Note: You can purchase dried peeled fava beans at specialty Mediterranean or Middle Eastern grocers. Whole Foods sells them too, but they have the skins on, so you'll need to peel them after they've soaked overnight.

Yogurt Raita

This recipe comes from Gail Lillian at Liba Falafel. You can make it up to two days in advance, and store in the fridge.

1/4 bunch (about 22 leaves) fresh mint

1/4 cucumber, peeled

1/2 seeded jalapeno pepper

1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice

3 1/2 cups whole milk yogurt

-- Kosher salt to taste

Instructions: Place mint leaves in the bowl of a food processor. Roughly chop cucumber and jalapeno, and add to bowl, along with lemon juice. Put yogurt in a separate mixing bowl.

Pulse the cucumber mixture until a slurry is formed. Stir into yogurt, and add salt to taste. It's important to not add yogurt to the food processor, as the fats in the yogurt will break and result in a runny sauce. Spoon raita onto the falafel sandwich on top of other salads to finish.

Olive-Orange Relish with Thyme

Makes about 4 cups

This simple recipe from Gail Lillian at Liba Falafel is a crowd favorite on her topping bar. It can be made in advance - in fact, she recommends serving it a day after preparation for best results. If you can't find lemon thyme, it's fine to use regular thyme instead.

1/4 bunch fresh lemon thyme, leaves picked

2 cups fresh orange juice, not from concentrate

3 tablespoons minced garlic

3 cups pitted kalamata olives

Instructions: Combine thyme, juice, and garlic in large saute pan. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook until juice is just barely a syrup, about 20 minutes. While mixture is reducing, pulse olives in food processor until irregularly chopped, maintaining some larger pieces. Add orange reduction to chopped olives. Stir well to fully incorporate juice mixture, and refrigerate until ready to use.

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